HIGHWAY ENGINEERING

Dr. Smaranika Panda (M.S & PhD IITM)

Associate Professor
CMR Institute of Technology
Department of Civil Engineering
 Syllabus

Module 3:

• Pavement Materials: Subgrade soil - desirable properties-HRB soil

classification- determination of CBR and modulus of sub grade reaction
with Problems, Aggregates- Desirable properties and tests, Bituminous
materials- Explanation on Tar, bitumen, cutback and emulsion-tests on
bituminous material

• Pavement Design: Pavement types, component parts of flexible and rigid

pavements and their functions, ESWL and its determination (Graphical
method only)-Examples
 Soil classification
Soil Classification Based on Grain Size
• There are several soil classification systems based on grain size of soil,
according to which soils have been classified as
a) Gravel
b) Sand
c) Silt and Clay

The most widely accepted grain size

classification system is MIT soil
classification system.

The Bureau of Indian Standards (BIS)

has also adopted the same limits as MIT
system for the Indian Standard
Classification System for soil grains.
 Soil classification
HRB classification:
 The Highway Research Board (HRB) soil classification method is also called
Revised Public Roads Administration (PRA) soil classification system.

 The HRB soil classification system is generally adopted in highway engineering

for the classification of subgrade soils.

 Classification is done by conducting 3 tests

 Sieve analysis,
 Liquid limit
 Plastic limit
 Soil classification
HRB classification:

 Soils are divided into seven groups A-1 to A-7.

 A-1, A-2 and A-3 soils are granular soils, percentage fines passing 0.075 mm
sieve being less than 35.
 A-4, A-5, A-6 and A-7, soils are fine grained or silt-clay soils, passing 0.075 mm
sieve being greater than 35 percent.

• A-1 soils are well graded mixture of stone fragments, gravel coarse sand, fine
sand and non-plastic or slightly plastic soil binder. The soils of this group are
subdivided into two subgroups, A- 1-a, consisting predominantly of stone
fragments or gravel and A-I-b consisting predominantly of coarse sand

• A-2 group of soils include a wide range of granular soils ranging from A- 1 to A-3
groups, consisting of granular soils and up to 35% fines of A-4, A-5, A-6 or A-7
groups. Based on the fines content, the soils of A-2 groups are subdivided into
subgroups A-2-4, A-2- 5, A-2-6 and A-2-7
 Soil classification
HRB classification:

• A-3 soils consist mainly, uniformly graded medium or fine sand similar to beach sand
or desert blown sand. Stream-deposited mixtures of poorly graded fine sand with
some coarse sand and gravel are also included in this group.

• A-4 soils are generally silty soils, non-plastic or moderately plastic in nature with
liquid limit and plasticity index values less than 40 and 10 respectively

• A-5 soils are also silty soils with plasticity index less than 10%, but with liquid limit
values exceeding 40%. These include highly elastic or compressible, soils, usually of
diatomaceous of micaceous character.

• A-6 group of soils are plastic clays, having high values of plasticity index exceeding
10% and low values of liquid limit below 40%; they have high volume change
properties with variation in moisture content.

• A-7 soils are also clayey soils as A-6 soils, but with high values of both liquid limit and
plasticity index, (LL greater than 40% and P1 greater than 10%). These soils have low
permeability and high volume change properties with changes in moisture content.
 Pavement Materials

Pavement:
• Superimposed layers of processed materials above the natural soil
subgrade
Primary function:
• To distribute the applied vehicle loads to the sub-grade

• To ensure that the transmitted stresses due to wheel load are sufficiently
reduced, so that they will not exceed bearing capacity of the sub grade

• The pavement structure should be able to

– provide a surface of acceptable riding quality,
– adequate skid resistance,
– favourable light reflecting characteristics, and low noise pollution
 Types of Pavement
• Two types of pavements flexible pavements and rigid pavements.
 Highway Material

Sub grade:
Natural foundation

Function:

i) Adequate support to pavement

ii) Possess sufficient stability under adverse climatic condition

Properties:

Strength: Shear Strength (CBR Test)

Stiffness: Modulus of sub grade reaction (k)
 Highway Material

Sub grade:
Testing:
CBR test:
Usage:
 Evaluate stability of soil sub grade and other flexible pavements

 Thickness of flexible pavements are evaluated

 Can be conducted both in lab and field

 Arbitrary strength test

 Cant be used to evaluate soil properties like cohesion, internal friction etc.
 Highway Material
CBR test procedure:
Apparatus:
Cylindrical Mould 150mm dia, Base plate, cylindrical plunger (50 mm dia),
surcharge weight (147 mm dia) and compression testing machine
Procedure:
 Specimen in the mould is subjected to four days soaking laod is applied in the
cylindrical plunger of 5 cm diameter so that the penetration rate is 1.25
mm/minute
 Loads for 0, 0.5, 1, 2, 2.5,3, 4, 5, 7,10 and 12.5 mm penetration are recorded.
 Load penetration curve is plotted
 If the curve is concave upwards initially due to surface irregularities, correction
applied by drawing tangent to the curve at the point where the tangent meets
the horizontal axis
 The test load for 2.5 mm and 5 mm penetration are recorded
 Highway Material

CBR test result

 Highway Material
Modulus of Sub grade Reaction

• Defined as the pressure sustained per unit deformation of sub grade at

specified deformation or pressure level, in plate bearing test/ plate load test

• Standard plate size: 75 cm diameter

• Method 1: Standard pressure 7 kg/cm2 (Revised US Corp Engineers method)

K = 0.7/δ (kg/cm2/cm) – NOT USED NOW

• Method 2: Standard settlement 1.25 mm or 0.125 cm

K = P/0.125 (kg/cm2/cm)
 Highway Material
Modulus of sub-grade reaction of soil - plate bearing
test

• The plate bearing test has been devised to evaluate the supporting
power of subgrade or any other pavement layer by using plates of
larger diameter.

• Plate bearing test was originally meant to find the modulus of

subgrade reaction in the Westergards’s analysis for wheel load
stresses in cement concrete pavement

• In the plate bearing test a compressive stress is applied to the soil

or pavement layer through rigid plates of relatively large size & the
deflection is measured for various stress values

• The deflection level is generally limited to a low value of 1.25mm to

5mm.
 Highway Material
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
•K may be defined as the pressure sustained per unit
deformation of subgrade at specified pressure level
using specified plate size.

•The standard plate size for finding K value is 75cm dia

in some test a smaller plate of 30cm dia is also used
(75,60,45,30 & 22.5 cm dia)
Highway Material
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
 Highway Material
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test

Apparatus used as Bearing plate -- Mild steel of 75cm dia &

1.5 to 2.5 cm thickness.

Loading equipment -- Reaction frame or dead load applied

may be measured either by a proving ring or dial gauge
assembly

Settle measurement -- Made by means of 3 or 4 dial gauge

fixed on the periphery of the bearing plate from an
independent datum frame
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
procedure
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
procedure
Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test Result

Bearing pressure settlement curve

 Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test Result

• The pressure p (kg/cm2) corresponding to a

settlement delta = 0.125cm (obtained from
the graph shown above)

• The modulus of subgrade reaction k is

calculated from the relation given in kg/cm3
 Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
Corrections
1. Correction for smaller plate size

 In some cases, the load capacity may not be

adequate to cause 75cm dia plate to settle
0.125cm. In such a case a plate of smaller dia (say
30cm) may be used.

 Then K value should be found by applying a suitable

correction for plate size. Example
 Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
Corrections
2. Allowance for Worst Subgrade Moisture
The modulus of subgrade reaction K of the soil will be lowest
at the soaked condition . the moisture content at the time of
carrying out plate load test may not represent the worst
moisture condition and hence in such cases the value of
modulus of subgrade reaction K is found out the prevailing
moisture content and the value so obtained is modified by
applying a correction factor.

Here Ks is modulus of subgrade reaction at soaked condition

and Ps is pressure at soaked condition.
 Modulus subgrade reaction (k) : Plate load test
Corrections

3.Correction for Deflection or Bending of Mild Steel

Plate
 Plate load test- Modulus of elasticity
Modulus of Elasticity (E)
 K =P/0.125 (kg/cm3)
Load corresponding to Settlement of 0.125
cm or 1.25mm????
Pressure=Load/Area
Diameter 30 cm
Area=
Solution:

Data Given:
Plate diameter is a1=30cm, load is in kg, Settlement is in
mm

Requirement:
We need to find modulus of subgrade reaction for the
standard plate and we know standard plate diameter is
a=75cm for plate bearing test.
Solution:

Step1:
Find the load for corresponding settlement Δ=0.125cm by plottingthe
tabulated data or find the load by interpolation
 Plot for 30cm dia plate
2000

1500
Load values, kg
1000

500

0
0 0.2 0.4 0.6 0.8 1 1.2 1.4 1.6 1.8 2
Mean Settlement values, mm

• From plot the load at 0.125cm settlement = 1490kg

• From interpolation load at 1.25 cm settlement = 1590-

(((1590-1480)/(1.53-1.23))*(1.53-1.25))= 1487.333 kg
 1590
???

1480 1480

1.23 1.25 1.53

(1590-1480)/(1.53-1.23) = (?- 1480)/(1.25-1.23)

Step2: Pressure or unit load p1 for 30 cm dia
plate= 1490/area of the plate =
1490
p1 
 152
Modulus of subgrade reaction k1 for 30cm dia
plate = k1= p1/ Δ= 1490
 15 2 0.125
Modulus of subgrade reaction k for 75cm dia
plate= k=(k1a1/a)=
Solution:
Dial gauge reading at 2.5 mm penetration =34 divisions and 5 mm= 48 divisions
Load at 2.5mm penetration = (34*190)/100 = 64.6 Kg
Load at 5 mm penetration = (48*190)/100 = 91.2 Kg
Solution:

CBR at 2.5 mm penetration =

(64.6*100)/1370= 4.71%

CBR at 5 mm penetration =
(91.2*100)/2055= 4.43%

Hence CBR value of the soil sample will be the highest of these two values

CBR of soil = CBR at 2.5 mm penetration = 4.71 %

 Highway Material
Aggregates:

 Main component of the pavement used as sub base course and base course.

 Strength of flexible pavement depends upon the strength of aggregate

 Hard, angular, strong

 Hard aggregate- Ex granite chips

 Soft aggregate- Ex Moorum, Kankar,

Laterite, Shale
Desirable properties of aggregates and tests on
aggregates

• Resistance to crushing or crushing test----Aggregate

crushing test

• Resistance to impact or toughness----Aggregate impact test

• Resistance to abrasion or hardness----Los angeles abrasion

test

• Good shape factor to avoid to flaky and elongated particles

of coarse aggregates----Shape tests—flakiness index,
elongation index and angularity number

• Resistance to weathering or durability----Soundness test or

durability test
Desirable properties of aggregates and tests on
aggregates
• Good adhesion or affinity with bituminous materials in
presence of water or less stripping of bitumen coating
from aggregates----Specific gravity test and water
absorption test, bitumen adhesion test or stripping value
test or stripping value test of aggregates

• Angular number to know the requirement of filler

material and in tern strength of the aggregates

• Resistance from getting polished or smooth/ slippery----

Polished stone value test or accelerated polishing test
 Highway Material
Aggregates
DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
1.Strength

• The aggregates used in top layers are subjected to

(i) Stress action due to traffic wheel load
(ii) Wear and tear,
(iii) Crushing.
• Sufficient strength to withstand the stresses due to traffic wheel load.
• Aggregate used in wearing course –capable of taking high stress+ wear tear
• Assessed by using crushing test

Crushing test
 One of the model in which pavement material can fail is by crushing under
compressive stress.
 A test is standardized by IS:2386 part-IV and used to determine the crushing
strength of aggregates.

 The aggregate crushing value provides a relative measure of resistance to crushing

under gradually applied crushing load.
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
1.Strength

 Crushing test: Dry aggregates passing through 12.5 mm sieves and retained 10
mm sieves are used

 filled in a cylindrical measure of 11.5 mm diameter and 18 cm height in three

layers.

 Each layer is tampered 25 times by 1.6 cm dia tamper- 45 to 60 cm fLL

 The specimen is subjected to a compressive load of 40 tonnes gradually

applied at the rate of 4 tonnes/minute.

 Aggregate crushing value=

Crushed material passing through 2.36 mm sieve X 100
Total weight of aggreagate.
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
1.Strength
Crushing test:
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
2. Hardness
 The aggregates used in the surface course are subjected to constant rubbing
or abrasion due to moving traffic. The aggregates should be hard enough to
resist the abrasive action caused by the movements of traffic.

 The abrasive action is severe when steel tyred vehicles moves over the
aggregates exposed at the top surface.

 Abrasion tests are

 Los Angeles’s test
 Deval Abrasion test and
 Dorry Abrasion test
 Highway Material
Aggregates
DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
2. Hardness- Abrasion test is carried out
 Los Angles’s test: Wear and impact is evaluated
 Los Angeles abrasion test is a preferred one for evaluate the hardness property
and has been standardized in India (IS:2386 part-IV). The principle of Los
Angeles abrasion test is to find the percentage wear due to relative rubbing
action between the aggregate and steel
 5-10 kg specimen taken in the cylinder and rotated at the speed of 30-33 rpm
for a total of 500 -1000 revolutions depending upon the gradation of aggregates.
 Abrasion value=
Total weight of aggregate - Crushed material passing through 1.7 mm sieve * 100

Total weight of aggregate

A value less than 10 signifies an exceptionally strong aggregate while above 35 would
normally be regarded as weak aggregates as per IRC
 Highway Material
Aggregates
DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
2. Hardness –
 Los Angles’s test:

A maximum value of 40 percent is

allowed for WBM base course in
Indian conditions. For bituminous
concrete, a maximum value of 35 is
specified. value
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES

3. Toughness

 Resistance of the aggregates to impact is termed as toughness.

 Aggregates used in the pavement should be able to resist the effect caused by
the jumping of the wheels from one particle to another at different levels
causes severe impact on the aggregates

 The aggregate impact test is carried out to evaluate the resistance to impact
of aggregates.
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
3. Toughness : Impact test

 Aggregates passing 12.5 mm sieve and retained on 10 mm used

 cylindrical steel cup of internal dia 10.2 mm and depth 5 cm
which is attached to a metal base of impact testing machine.
 material is filled in 3 layers where each layer is tamped for 25
number of blows.
 Metal hammer of weight 13.5 to 14 Kg is arranged to drop with
a free fall of 38.0 cm by vertical guides and the test specimen is
subjected to 15 number of blows.
 The crushed aggregate is allowed to pass through 2.36 mm IS
sieve
 For wearing course, the impact value shouldn’t exceed 30
percent.
 For bituminous shouldn’t exceed 35 percent.
 For WBM shouldn’t exceed 40 percent (base courses)
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
4. Shape of aggregates:

 Aggregates which happen to fall in a particular size range may have rounded,
cubical, angular, flaky or elongated particles.

 It is evident that the flaky and elongated particles will have less strength and
durability when compared with cubical, angular or rounded particles of the
same aggregate.

 Hence too flaky and too much elongated aggregates should be avoided as far
as possible.

 Tests done are flakiness index and elongation index

Aggregates Highway Material
DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
4. Shape of aggregates:

 The particle shape of the aggregate mass is determined by the percentage of flaky and
elongated particles in it.

 Aggregates which are flaky or elongated are detrimental to higher workability and stability
of mixes.

 The flakiness index is defined as the percentage by weight of aggregate particles whose
least dimension is less than 0.6 times their mean size. Test procedure had been
standardized in India (IS:2386 part-I)

The elongation index of an aggregate is

defined as the percentage by weight of
particles whose greatest dimension (length) is
1.8 times their mean dimension.

This test is applicable to aggregates larger

than 6.3 mm.
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
5. Adhesion with bitumen

 Bitumen adheres well to all normal types of road aggregates provided they are dry
and free from dust.

 In the absence of water there is practically no adhesion problem of bituminous

construction.

 Adhesion problem occurs when the aggregate is wet and cold. This problem can be
dealt with by removing moisture from the aggregate by drying and increasing the
mixing temperature.

 Presence of water causes stripping of binder from the coated aggregates. This
problems occur when bitumen mixture is permeable to water.

 Static immersion test is one specified by IRC and is quite simple.

 The principle of the test is by immersing aggregate fully coated with binder in
water maintained at 400C temperature for 24 hours. IRC has specified maximum
stripping value of aggregates should not exceed 5%
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES

6. Water absorption and specific gravity

 Specific gravity between 2.6 – 2.9

 Water absorption not more than 0.6%

7. Angular number

 For any aggregate it measures the voids in excess of rounded gravel for which
voids ratio is 33%.
 Higher the number, more angular is the aggregate
 Range for construction – 0 to 11
 Highway Material
Aggregates

DESIRABLE PROPERTIES
8. Durability

 The property of aggregates to withstand adverse action of weather is called

soundness

 The aggregates are subjected to the physical and chemical action of rain and
ground water, impurities there-in and that of atmosphere, hence it is desirable
that the road aggregates used in the construction should be sound enough to
withstand the weathering action
 Highway Material
Aggregates

AGGREGATE TESTS
8. Durability

Soundness test

 Soundness test is intended to study the resistance of aggregates to weathering

action, by conducting accelerated weathering test cycles.

 The Porous aggregates subjected to freezing and thawing are likely to

disintegrate prematurely.

 To ascertain the durability of such aggregates, they are subjected to an

accelerated soundness test as specified in IS:2386 part-V.

 Sodium sulphate or magnesium sulphate solution used- 10 cycles of dipping

and drying.
 Highway Material
Aggregates

AGGREGATE TESTS - SUMMARY

 Crushing test

 Abrasion test

 Impact test

 Soundness test

 Shape test

 Specific gravity and water absorption test Bitumen adhesion test

 Highway Material
Bitumen
 Bituminous is a black or dark coloured solid or viscous substances
consists chiefly high molecular weight hydrocarbons derived from
fractional distillation of petroleum

 Asphalt: When bitumen contains some inert minerals. Its called

Asphalt

 Tars : Viscous liquid obtained when natural organic substances

such as coal, wood, or petroleum are destructively distilled in
absence of air

 Cut back: if the viscosity of bitumen is reduced by volatile

dilutent, it is called cut back

 Emulsion: if bitumen is suspended in a finely divided condition in

an aqueous medium and stabilized with an emulsifier , the
material is known as emulsion
 Bitumen vs Tar
Bitumen Tar

Black in color with greenish shade Black in color

Carbon content is less compared to Tar Carbon content is high

More adhesive Less Adhesive

Less susceptible to temperature More susceptible to temperature

Obtained from fractional distillation of Obtained from destructive distillation

crude petroleum of coal or wood.

Completely soluble in CS2 and CCl4 Completely soluble in Toluene

Sp. Gr. range – 0.98 to 1.03 Sp. Gr range – 1.1 to 1.25

Production
 Highway Material
Bitumen
Cutback bitumen:
 In cutback bitumen suitable solvent is used to lower the viscosity of the
bitumen.

 cutback bitumen is preferred from the environmental point of view also .

 The solvent from the bituminous material will evaporate and the bitumen will
bind the aggregate.

 Cutback bitumen is used for cold weather bituminous road construction and
maintenance.

 The distillates used for preparation of cutback bitumen are naphtha, kerosene,
diesel oil, and furnace oil.

 There are different types of cutback bitumen like rapid curing (RC), medium
curing (MC), and slow curing (SC).

 RC is recommended for surface dressing and patchwork. MC is recommended

for premix with less quantity of fine aggregates. SC is used for premix with
appreciable quantity of fine aggregates
 Highway Material
Bitumen
Bitumen Emulsion:
 Bitumen emulsion is a liquid product in which bitumen is suspended in a finely divided
condition in an aqueous medium
 Stabilised by suitable material.
 Normally cationic type emulsions are used in India. The bitumen content in the
emulsion is around 60% and the remaining is water.
 When the emulsion is applied on the road it breaks down resulting in release of water
and the mix starts to set. The time of setting depends upon the grade of bitumen.
 The viscosity of bituminous emulsions can be measured as per IS: 8887-1995.

 Bitumen emulsions are ideal binders for hill road construction. Where heating of
bitumen or aggregates are difficult.
 Three types of bituminous emulsions are available, which are Rapid setting (RS),
Medium setting (MS), and Slow setting (SS).

 Rapid setting emulsions are used for surface dressing work. Medium setting emulsions
are preferred for premix jobs and patch repairs work. Slow setting emulsions are
preferred in rainy season
 Highway Material
Bitumen
Modified Bitumen:

 Certain additives or blend of additives called as bitumen modifiers can improve

properties of Bitumen and bituminous mixes. Bitumen treated with these modifiers
is known as modified bitumen.

 E.g Polymer (Elastomeric or Plastomeric) modified bitumen (PMB)/ rubber (Natural

or Crumbed) modified bitumen (NRMB or CRMB)
 Highway Material
Tar
 Obtained by destructive distillation of wood and charcoal

 5 grades of Tar- RT1, RT2, RT3, RT4, RT5 based on increasing order
of viscosity

 RT1 used for surface painting under exceptional cold climate

 RT2- Standard surface paointing in Indian condiion
 RT3- renewal coats, light carpets
 RT4- Premixing Tar Macadam base course
 RT5- grouting purpose
 Highway Material
Requirements of Bitumen
depend on the mix type and construction.

• The bitumen should not be highly temperature susceptible:

during the hottest weather the mix should not become too soft or
unstable, and during cold weather the mix should not become too
brittle causing cracks.

• The viscosity of the bitumen at the time of mixing and

compaction should be adequate. This can be achieved by use of
cutbacks or emulsions of suitable grades or by heating the
bitumen and aggregates prior to mixing.

• There should be adequate affinity and adhesion between the

bitumen and aggregates used in the mix.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test
2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen

1. Penetrationtest:
 it measures hardness or softness of bitumen by measuring the
depth in tenths of a millimetre to which a standard loaded
needle will penetrate vertically in 5 seconds

 The penetrometer consists of a needle assembly with a total

weight of 100g

 The test should be conducted at a specified temperature of

25o C

 The bitumen is softened to a pouring consistency, stirred

thoroughly and poured into containers at a depth at least 15
mm in excess of the expected penetration
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test:
 Grading of bitumen is done using this test value

 80/100 the range 80 to 100 at standard test conditions. 30/40

and 80/100 are the commonly used

 In hot climate 30/40 grade preferred due to its lower

penetration

 Unit- (1/10 )mm

 More grade ----- More penetration ---- More soft

 As road tars are soft, penetration test can not be carried

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen

2. Ductility test:
 Ductility is the property of bitumen that permits it to undergo
deformation or elongation
 It is expressed as distance in cm
 A standard sample or briquette of the material will be
elongated before it breaks.
 Test conducted at 27o C temperature with a rate of pull 50
mm/min
 Dimension of the specimen is exactly 10mm x 10mm.
 The bitumen sample is heated and poured in the mould
assembly placed on a plate.
 Test is believed to measure adhesiveness and elasticity of
bitumen
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
2. Ductility test:

 The ductility value gets affected by factors such as pouring

temperature, test temperature, rate of pulling etc.

 A minimum ductility value of 75 cm specified by the BIS.

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
3. Softening pointtest
 Softening point denotes the temperature at which the bitumen
attains a particular degree of softening under the specifications
of test.
 The test is conducted by using Ring and Ball apparatus
 A steel ball is placed upon the bitumen sample and the liquid
medium is heated at a rate of 5 o C per minute.

 Temperature is noted when the

softened bitumen touches the metal
plate which is at a specified distance
below.

 Higher softening point indicates

lower temperature susceptibility
and is preferred in hot climates.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
4. Specific gravity test

 The specific gravity of bitumen is defined as the ratio of mass of

given volume of bitumen of known content to the mass of equal
volume of water at 27o C.

 The specific gravity can be measured using either pycnometer or

preparing a cube specimen of bitumen in semi solid or solid
state.

 The specific gravity of bitumen varies from 0.97 to 1.02.

 Cut backs has lower than bitumen

 Tars have 1.10 – 1.25

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
5. Viscosity test

 Viscosity denotes the fluid property of bituminous material and

it is a measure of resistance to flow

 Orifice type viscometers are used to indirectly find the viscosity

of liquid binders like cutbacks and emulsions.

 The viscosity expressed in seconds is the time taken by the 50 ml

bitumen material to pass through the orifice of a cup, under
standard test conditions and specified temperature.

 Viscosity of a cutback can be measured with either 4.0 mm

orifice at 25o C or 10 mm orifice at 40o C.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
6. Flash and Fire point test

 Flash point: BIS defined the flash point as the temperature at

which the vapour of bitumen catches fire

 Fire point: is defined as the lowest temperature under specified

test conditions at which the bituminous material gets ignited
and burns.

 Pensky Martens –Closed and open cup test

Flash point 175 degree centigrade for bitumen based on Pensky
Martens –Closed cup test
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test
8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
7. Float test

 Measures consistency

 The consistency of bituminous material can be measured either

by penetration test or viscosity test.

 Float test used for those bitumen for which neither orifice
viscometer or penetrometer could be used

 Time taken in seconds by water to force its way into the float
through bitumen plug is noted as float test value
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
7. Floattest
 The apparatus consists of an aluminium float and a brass collar
filled with bitumen to be tested.
 The specimen in the mould is cooled to a temperature of 5oC and
screwed in to float.
 The total test assembly is floated in the water bath at 50oC and
the time required for water to pass its way through the specimen
plug is noted in seconds and is expressed as the float value.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11.Spot test 12.

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
8. Water content test

 It is desirable that the bitumen contains minimum water content

to prevent foaming of the bitumen when it is heated above the
boiling point of water.

 The water in a bitumen is determined by mixing known weight of

specimen in a pure petroleum distillate free from water, heating
and distilling of the water.

 The weight of the water condensed and collected is expressed as

percentage by weight of the original sample. The allowable
maximum water content should not be more than 0.2% by
weight.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
9. Loss on heating test

 When the bitumen is heated it loses the volatility and gets

hardened.

 About 50gm of the sample is weighed and heated to a

temperature of 1630C for 5hours in a specified oven designed for
this test.

 The sample specimen is weighed again after the heating period

and loss in weight is expressed as percentage by weight of the
original sample.

 Bitumen used in pavement mixes should not indicate more than

1% loss in weight, but for bitumen having penetration values
150-200 up to 2% loss in weight is allowed.
 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
10. Solubility test

 Pure bitumen is completely soluble in carbon disulphide, Carbon

tetra chloride and benzene

 There will be black residue if its not pure

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
1. Penetration test

2. Ductility test

3. Softening point test

4. Specific gravity test

5. Viscosity test

6. Flash and Fire point test

7. Float test

8. Water content test

9. Loss on heating test

10. Solubility test

11. Spot test

 Highway Material
Tests on bitumen
10. Spot test

 Tests for checking over heating or cracked bitumen

 Naphtha Solution is used

 Syllabus

Module 3:

• Pavement Materials: Subgrade soil - desirable properties-HRB soil

classification- determination of CBR and modulus of sub grade reaction
with Problems Aggregates- Desirable properties and tests, Bituminous
materials- Explanation on Tar, bitumen, cutback and emulsion-tests on
bituminous material

• Pavement Design: Pavement types, component parts of flexible and rigid

pavements and their functions, ESWL and its determination (Graphical
method only)-Examples
 PAVEMENT DESIGN
Requirements of a pavement

An ideal pavement should meet the following requirements:

• Sufficient thickness to distribute the wheel load stresses to a safe value on the
sub-grade soil
• Structurally strong to withstand all types of stresses imposed upon it
• Adequate coefficient of friction to prevent skidding of vehicles
• Smooth surface to provide comfort to road users even at high speed
• Produce least noise from moving vehicles
• Dust proof surface so that traffic safety is not impaired by reducing visibility
• Impervious surface, so that sub-grade soil is well protected and
• Long design life with low maintenance cost.
 Types of pavement
1. Flexible pavement 2. Rigid pavement 3. Semi-rigid pavement
Flexible pavement:
• Flexible pavement consists of 4 component parts namely- subgrade, sub-
base, base and wearing/surface course.
• Flexible pavements will transmit wheel load stresses to the lower layers by
grain-to-grain transfer through the points of contact in the granular
structure.
• The wheel load acting on the pavement will be distributed to a wider area,
and the stress decreases with the depth. Hence, the design of flexible
pavement uses the concept of layered system.
• The top layer has to be of best quality to sustain maximum compressive
stress, in addition to wear and tear.
• The lower layers will experience lesser magnitude of stress and low quality
material can be used.
• Flexible pavements are constructed using bituminous materials.
• These pavements have negligible flexural strength.
• Undulations in the lower layer gets reflected to the surface.
Rigid pavement:
• Rigid pavements have sufficient flexural strength to transmit the wheel load
stresses to a wider area below.
• They are placed either directly on the prepared sub-grade or on a single layer
of granular or stabilized material.
• In rigid pavement, load is distributed by the slab action, and the pavement
behaves like an elastic plate resting on a viscous medium.
• Rigid pavements are constructed by Portland cement concrete(PCC) and should
be analyzed by plate theory.
• Critical condition of stress is because of maximum flexural stress occurring in
slab due to wheel load and temperature changes.
• Tensile stresses are developed due to bending of slab under wheel load and
temperature variations.
• No deformation of shape due to undulations in lower layer.
 Types of pavement
Feature Flexible pavement Rigid pavement
Flexural Strength Lower or negligible flexural strength High flexural strength

Design Principle Concept of layered system Plate theory (slab action)

Tensile stress and temperature
Stress Compressive stress stress
Transfer of stress Grain to grain transfer No such transfer
Deformations in lower layer reflects Deformations in lower surface
Deformation
in layers above. does not reflects in layer above.
Material Granular material Portland cement concrete

Number of layers 3 to 4 layers above the soil subgrade 2 layers above the soil subgrade

Function To provide load supporting capability To prevent pumping

Binding material Bitumen Cement

Typical layers of a conventional flexible pavement includes---
 seal coat,
 surface course,
 tack coat,
 binder course,
 prime coat,
 base course,
 sub-base course,
 compacted sub-grade, and natural subgrade
• Seal Coat
– Thin surface treatment
– Function – water proof – skid resistance
• Tack Coat
- Light application of bitumen. Uniformly cover the entire surface
- Function – Bond between two layers
- Bitumen emulsion
• Prime Coat
- Low viscous cutback bitumen on granular bases
- Penetrates into the layer – plugs the voids – water tight surface.
- Function - bonding between two layers
• Surface course:-
– Layer directly in contact with traffic loads
– Superior quality material used
– Constructed using dense graded bitumen concrete.
– Provides friction , smoothness , drainage
– Prevent ingress of water to underlying layers.
– Must be tough to resist distortion
– Marshall stability test - to evaluate the optimum bitumen content
• Binder Course
– Layer provides bulk of bitumen concrete structure
– Distribute load to the base course
– Low quality materials used compared to surface course
• Base course
- Layer immediately beneath the surface of binder course
- Provides additional load distribution
– Contributes to the sub surface drainage
- Crushed stone , crushed slag or other stabilized materials.
- Base course are used under rigid pavement for
- preventing pumping
- Protecting the sub grade against frost action
• Sub Base course
- Layer beneath the base course
- Provide structural support, improve drainage and reduce intrusion of fines
from the subgrade in the pavement structure.
- Sub base course is not always needed or used

Sub base and base course are evaluated by strength or stability test like plate load
test
• Sub grade:-
– Layer of natural soil prepared to receive the stresses.
– At no time soil sub grade should be overstressed,
– Compacted to desirable density at optimum moisture content
– Strength properties of subgrade are evaluated by common test like
– California bearing ratio test
– California resistance value test
– Triaxial compression test
– Plate bearing test
• To evaluate the surface course and the pavement as whole – Plate bearing test
and Bankelman beam test are carried out.
 Design factors
• Design life
– Flexible: 20 years
– Rigid pavement: 30 years
• Anticipated traffic
• Design traffic: 24 hr x 7 days (express in cv/day) as per IRC -9 ; cv = commercial
vehicles
• Design wheel load:
– Tyre pressure/inflation pressure- it influences the quality of surface course
– Contact pressure- Load on wheel/ contact area
– Contact pressure is assumed to be circular; actual contact b/w the wheel to the
road is elliptical
– At a greater depth effect of tyre pressure diminishes
– Rigidity factor : Contact pressure/ tyre pressure
– Maximum wheel load: The wheel load configurations are important to know
the way in which the loads of a given vehicle are applied on the pavement
surface
 Design factors
• Sub grade soil: The properties of soil subgarde are important in deciding the thickness
requirements of pavements.
• A soil subgrade with lower stability requires thicker pavement.
• The stress strain behaviour of soil under static and repeated loads are important.
• The pavement performance also depends on subgrade soil properties and drainage.
• Climatic factors: Daily and seasonal variations in temperature has significance in design
and performance of rigid pavements and bituminous pavements.
• The climatic variations cause major effects such as variation in moisture condition,
frost action and variation in temperature.
• Pavement component materials: For design purpose it is required that the various
pavement materials are assigned strength suitable to the design method employed for
the purpose.
• The stress characteristics of pavement components depends on characteristics of
materials used.
 Design factors
• Design wheel load:
– Dual or multiple wheel loads: The maximum wheel load within the specified
limit and to carry greater load it is necessary to provide dual wheel assembly
to the rear axles of the roads vehicles.

– Repetition of loads: The deformation of load pavement (or) sub grade due to
a single application of wheel load may be small. It is required to carry out
traffic surveys for accounting the factor of repetitions for wheel loads in the
design of pavement. P1N1 = P2 N2 where P- load, N- number of repitition
Design factors
P P
 •In the dual wheel load assembly----
Let “d” be the clear gap
between the two wheels
S be the spacing between the
centers of the wheels and
a be the radius of the circular
contact area of each wheel.
Then S = (d + 2a).

ESWL may be determined based on either equivalent deflection or equivalent

stress criterion.

The load dispersion is assumed to be at an angle of 45˚

Where,
P is the wheel load,
S is the center to center distance between the two wheels,
d is the clear distance between two wheels,
z is the desired depth as shown in the Figure.
 Graphical Method to Find EWSL

A straight line relationship is assumed between ESWL and depth on log scales for
determining ESWL. The plot is made as shown in fig above.

Two points A and B are plotted on the log-log graph with coordinates of A (P, d/2) and
B(2p,2s),line AB is a plot which is the focus of points where any single wheel load is
equivalent to a certain set of dual wheels.

 To Calculate the ESWL for a dual assembly it is essential to estimate a design thickness
of the pavement.

If the design thickness so obtained is equal to the estimated thickness then the ESWL
calculations could be considered as correct. Otherwise trials are made.
Data given
d= 10 cm
S= 20 cm

Step 1:
When z = d/2 = 5 cm
Load = p = 2044 kg
Step 2
When z= 2xS = 40 cm
Load = 2 x p = 2 x 2044 = 4088 kg

Step 3
When z = 20 cm

ESWL
 Reference
• https://nptel.ac.in/content/storage2/courses/
105101087/downloads/Lec-22.pdf

• https://nptel.ac.in/content/storage2/courses/
105101087/downloads/Lec-23.pdf

• Justo, C.E.G. and Khanna, S.K., 2010. Highway

Engineering. Nem Chand & Bros, Civil Lines,
Roorkie–247667, India.